Charitable Hearts Read Free Page B

and leaned his head back on the chair. Maggie knew he was bothered by what she found out. All it took was reading the financial statements. He lifted his head and caught her looking at him. The smile nearly got her. Oh, boy…you are bad news.
    “Do you still want my help?”
    “Yes, absolutely.”
    “Okay, first, fire your CPA. Get all of your books and accounts and get them over to Laura. She’s going to kill me because I’ve never done this before, but you need serious help and she’s the only one I trust. Once she gets your books, we’ll go from there.”
    Levi gave her a lopsided grin. “I can do that,” he said and pulled out his phone. “Oh, man, I have to go.”
    “Okay,” Maggie said without getting up.
    He slapped the arms of the chair, jumped up and walked to the door. “Oh, I almost forgot. I’m having a party in two weeks. Be there or be square!”
    “I don’t do parties.”
    Levi’s eyebrows raised. “Oh, you do now. Remember we’re going to be working together. Well, this is a donor party and you can’t miss it.”
    Maggie pushed out of the chair and stood opposite Levi, arms crossed. She nodded, flexed her jaw, and smiled. “All right. Date, place and time?”
    “My house,” he said and looked at his phone. “Two weeks from this Friday. Party starts at eight.”
    “I’ll see you there.”
    Levi grinned. “Awesome!”
    Maggie followed him out the door, watched him get on his bike, and drive off. A party? When was the last time she’d been to a party? Did she even have anything to wear to a party? Oh, man, how many people would be at this party? The thought made her skin crawl. She shivered and walked back into her house.

Five
    “Yo! Gary! I’m here.” Levi called out in a somewhat empty looking house. His phone buzzed and he looked at it. It simply said, basement. He took off his coat, hung it up in the entry closet, and tossed his keys in the dish on the entry table.
    In the basement, he found Gary, with a headset on, playing a game. “No, dude!” He raised his hands up, questioning whatever had just happened. “Man, this guy blows. I had the shot and he blocked it.”
    “No game etiquette, eh?”
    “None!” Gary suddenly looked at him and frowned. “And where were you?”
    “Maggie Lawrence’s house.”
    Gary quickly pulled off the headset, and glared at Levi. “What? And you didn’t take me? You know I so wanted to go.”
    “I know, man, but I wanted to go the first time by myself.” Levi plopped down onto the worn couch and put his feet on the coffee table, crossing them at the ankles. He picked up a gaming magazine and thumbed through it absentmindedly. His thoughts were still on the tall brunette who kept him guessing.
    “You like her. You do!” Gary pointed a finger in his direction.
    “No, I don’t.” He smiled and continued to look through the magazine. She is certainly interesting, though.
    “You, sir, are a liar.”
    Levi dropped the magazine in his lap. “Gary, I don’t. She’s just a nice girl who gives out money to places and I happen to have one of those places that needs her money. By the way, I gotta fire Billy.”
    “What? Why?”
    “Dude is, like, charging me two hundred large a year to run the Geeks and all of my board members are getting a hundred a year. It was supposed to be volunteer. I had no idea.” He scratched his head. “Plus, what little money was left over was given to the CF Foundation, which is fine and all, but I wanted it to go to Amelia’s hospital. So he wasn’t even doing that right.”
    “Wow,” Gary said and shook his head. “That’s nuts. No wonder we’re so broke. Wait, I’m on the board and I don’t get a hundred thousand a year.”
    “I think we’ve been scammed, but Maggie told me to call her friend Laura and get things to her so I’m gonna do that.”
    “Ohhhkay…so already sharing CPA’s. What’s next? Toothbrushes?”
    Levi smacked Gary’s arm. “Shut up. She’s…”
    “It’s okay, man,